BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- A court appointed receiver in Jefferson County's HR department may have lost credibility with the way he appointed an interim director at Cooper Green Mercy Health Services, Commission President David Carrington said Friday in a radio interview.

Carrington told host Matt Murphy of "The Matt Murphy Show" that he, Carrington, was concerned with the way Receiver Ronald Sims selected Roger McCullough as interim director at Cooper Green.

Earlier this month Sims said he decided to move with the appointment because the lack of adequate leadership at the facility had an adverse impact on the employees and patients.

Carrington said Sims made the appointment without notifying County Manager Tony Petelos.

"I also believe that announcing it in an op-ed piece . . . without telling the county manager, because this person reports to the county manager, was not strategically wise," Carrington said. "There is no doubt (Dr. Sims) had the authority to do that, but appointing someone to work for someone else without giving that person the courtesy . . . is not a good management technique and I think he lost credibility by doing that."

Sims, a business school professor, was appointed receiver by a federal judge to bring the county into compliance with a 30 years old federal consent decree.

County commissioners have been critical of Sims in a number of areas including his $23.5 million budget request and decision to halt drug tests for most new workers.

Carrington described relations between the county and Sims as "strained" but said the two sides are "now talking to each other and not at each other."

Sims was appointed in October.

Carrington also acknowledged in the radio interview that the county has its own credibility problem after three decades of non-compliance with a federal consent decree over its hiring practices involving minorities and women.

"The county hasn't had a great track record of addressing these problems," he said.